Thursday, June 28, 2007

BEES have given mankind unique products that scientists have failed to copy. Apart from honey and wax, bees also give something useful to health but human beings have ignored it. It is called propolis. Sometimes called bee glue, propolis is a sticky resin that seeps from the buds of some trees.

The project manager of Malaika Honey, Simon Turner, says bees gather propolis, carry it to their hives in their pollen baskets and blend it with wax flakes secreted from special glands on their abdomens to deposit it on the interior of their hives.

"Bees use propolis, which has antiseptic properties to neutralise any bacteria, fungi or virus that enters the hive," Turner says. "Propolis ensures a clean environment for the bees."

Turner, however, regrets that people simply destroy it when they harvest honey. Even those who do organised bee rearing, never harvest propolis mainly because of ignorance.

Turner started a project, Malaika Honey, to teach bee farmers the importance of all bee products. The project, found at Musajjalumbwa Road also harvests propolis and processes it into medicinal products.

"Propolis is a medicinal product that can work as an antibiotic, soothe inflammations, speed up healing of wounds, ease rheumatic pains, combat fungal infections and strengthen the body's immune system," Turner says…

Malaika Honey has filed an application to the National Drug Authority (NDA) for permission to dispense propolis as a drug. A letter signed by the NDA executive secretary, Apollo Muhairwe, says propolis has been placed on the list of notified local herbal medicines…